A monitoring apparatus is typically a number of sensors providing signals to specialized computers that analyze the signal and report to other computers that may further analyze the signals and issue commands relating to the monitored machinery. Such apparatus is often used to monitor machinery, such as pumps and electric motors, for the purpose of protecting the machinery itself and for the alternate purpose of maintaining the machinery in proper working condition. When a monitoring apparatus detects a serious fault condition, it may request a shutdown of the machinery. In many cases, machinery is difficult to restart after a shutdown. So, it is important for the monitoring apparatus to only shut down the machinery if there is a serious fault. In addition, it is important to understand why a particular shutdown occurred so that it can be fixed and the machinery can be restarted. A monitoring apparatus may be designed with great care to protect machinery based on many inputs, but often it is difficult to understand why a machine was stopped and thus it is difficult to determine the cause of the shutdown. The present invention addresses this problem.